Tipton Votes for Protection from IRS

Congressman Scott Tipton (R-CO) voted to protect Americans from suffering further abuse by the Internal Revenue Service (IRS). Tipton and his House colleagues passed the Financial Services and General Government Appropriations Act yesterday. The bill includes protections for taxpayers against IRS targeting and abuse of power, cuts wasteful spending, and increases accountability and transparency at the agency. In a statement, Tipton said “The abuse of power and deception that has occurred at the IRS is the reason Americans are rightfully skeptical of their government.” Tipton says although there is an investigation of targeting underway, and those responsible will face consequences, steps need to be taken to prevent it from occurring again. You’ll find more details on what the bill aims to accomplish below. Pictured: Scott Tipton

The Financial Services Appropriations Act includes provisions to:

Target Overreach and Abuse: Prohibits the IRS from targeting individuals for exercising freedom of speech, prevents the IRS from revising or implementing new regulations on non-profits, protects Americans from being targeted based on their ideological beliefs, and prevents the IRS from using funds to enforce the individual mandate in the President’s healthcare law.

Cut Waste: Reduces IRS funding by nearly $1.5 billion (15 percent of the agency’s overall budget), bans bonuses for employees that don’t pay their taxes or fail to do their jobs, and prohibits the waste of taxpayer funds on frivolous conferences and videos.

Increase Accountability and Transparency: Prohibits the destruction of records, protects confidential taxpayer information, and requires the IRS to train employees in ethics and impartial application of tax law.